Saving Space In The Kitchen

Image source:http://homedecorationidea.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/small-kitchens-Kitchen-with-open-shelving.jpg

If you are like most people, you never have enough space in the kitchen. There isn’t enough cupboard space to put all your pots, pans and crockery, and counter space is at a premium as well. Of course, if you are fortunate, you have a huge kitchen with an island counter and plenty of storage, but most of us who live in more modest accommodation have to put up with a little less room – for example, a galley kitchen.

Image source:http://www.veritasindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/cluttered-kitchen.jpg

The thing is that storage problems in the kitchen just seem to keep on getting worse. We buy a new set of Le Creuset cast-iron pans because they give us just that perfect even distribution of heat, but we can’t bear to part with the ones we had before. We just have to have that latest kitchen gadget, but we aren’t prepared to give up our trusty food processor to make room for it. We finally get to the point that we can’t even move around, let alone cook a meal.

One way that you can get some more space is to make better use of blind corner cabinets – cabinets at the corner where two counters meet. You can never seem to be able to reach inside of these, and as a result nothing is ever put in them and the space is wasted. However, you can reclaim this space simply by installing a set of half-moon shelves that swivel and pull out. Or, you could putt in a lazy Susan, which rotate and allow you to access the cabinet’s contents.

If you have finally reached the point where there really is no place to put anything else, then you may want to see if you can find self storage in your area. This can be very economical, and you don’t have to make a long-term commitment. This is particularly useful if you have all sorts of things that you really don’t want to part with, but on the other hand you very rarely use. Make a list of these, so that you don’t forget what you have in storage, and then pack them away in clearly numbered boxes. If you make a note of the box number against each item on the list, then it will be easy to retrieve things if you ever need them.

Another space-saving idea – and this needs a little construction – is to replace your kitchen table with a breakfast counter that runs along one of the walls in your kitchen. If you set the counter fairly high on the wall, and then get some high chairs that you can perch on, this can save you a lot of floor space. Not only will this make it easier to move around your kitchen, but you could also think about reusing the space for other things. For example, you could put in a freestanding cabinet against the wall, or even extend your existing fitted cabinets and counters into the area to dramatically increase your cooking and storage space.